Neurobiology of attention
There are a number of neuroanatomical features that have been identified as playing a role in attention. These include: Medial geniculate nucleus THe medial geniculate nucleus or medial geniculate body (MGB) is part of the auditory thalamus and represents the thalamic relay in the ascending auditory pathways between the inferior colliculus (IC) and the auditory cortex (AC). It is made up of a number of sub-nuclei that are distinguished by their neuronal morphology and density, by their afferent and efferent connections, and by and the coding properties of their neurons. It is thought that the MGB influences the direction and maintenance of attention. Dorsal attention network The dorsal attention network (DAN) is one of two sensory orienting systems in the human brain. It is involved in voluntary (top-down) orienting and shows activity increases after presentation of cues indicating where, when, or to what subjects should direct their attention. The dorsal attention network is bilateral and includes the intraparietal sulcus and the junction of the precentral and superior frontal sulcus (frontal eye fields) in each hemisphere.Fox, M.D., Corbetta, M., Snyder, A.Z., Vincent, J.L., & Raichle, M.E. (2006). Spontaneous neuronal activity distinguishes human dorsal and ventral attention systems. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 103, 10046-10051. Ventral attention network The ventral attention network (VAN) is one of two sensory orienting systems in the human brain, the other being the dorsal attention network. Its main function is to reorient attention towards salient stimuli. The VAN is considered to be involved mostly, if not entirely, in involuntary actions. The neural network is right hemisphere lateralized and includes the right temporal-parietal junction and the right ventral frontal cortex.Fox, M.D., Corbetta, M., Snyder, A.Z., Vincent, J.L., & Raichle, M.E. (2006). Spontaneous neuronal activity distinguishes human dorsal and ventral attention systems. PNAS, 103, 10046-10051. This system shows activity increases upon detection of salient targets, especially when they appear in unexpected locations.Posner, M. I. & Petersen, S. E. (1990). Annual Review of Neuroscience, 13, 25–42.Corbetta, M., Kincade, J. M., Ollinger, J. M., McAvoy, M. P. & Shulman, G. L. (2000). Nature Neuroscience, 3, 292–297.Astafiev, S. V., Shulman, G. I., Stanley, C. M., Snyder, A. Z., Van Essen, D. C. & Corbetta, M. (2003). Journal of Neuroscience, 23, 4689–4699.Ast afiev, S. V., St anley, C. M., Shulman, G. L. & Corbetta, M. (2004) Nature Neuroscience, 7, 542–548.Kincade, J. M., Abrams, R. A., Astafiev, S. V., Shulman, G. I. & Corbetta, M. (2005). Journal of Neuroscience, 25, 4593– 4604. Activity increases also are observed in the ventral system after abrupt changes in sensory stimuli,Downar, J., Crawley, A. P., Mikulis, D. J. & Dav is, K. D. (2000) Nature Neuroscience, 3, 277–283. at the onset and offset of task blocks,Fox, M. D., Snyder, A. Z., Barch, D. M., Gusnard, D. A. & Raichle, M. E. (2005). NeuroImage, 28, 956–966. and at the end of a completed trial.Shulman, G. I., Tansy, A. P., Kincade, M., Petersen, S. E., McAvoy, M. P. & Corbetta, M. (2002). Cerebral Cortex, 12, 590–600. The ventral attention network is one of several low frequency resting state networks in the brain. The others include the dorsal attention network and the default network. See also * Attentional control * Geraint Rees References Further reading *Itti L, Rees G, Tsotsos J. (Eds) The Neurobiology of Attention. Academic Press (2005). ISBN 0-12-375731-2 Category:Neurobiology of attention Category:Cognitive neuroscience